Interfaith Housing to renovate Hinkle House

When the city donated the Hinkle House, one of the oldest houses in Dodge City, to Interfaith Housing in December, it was with the understanding that they would renovate the house, and rent it out. The renovation project is set to begin in just over a week.

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By Julia Kazar

Dodge City Daily Globe - Dodge City, KS

By Julia Kazar

Posted Jan. 3, 2013 at 6:00 AM

By Julia Kazar
Posted Jan. 3, 2013 at 6:00 AM

DODGE CITY

When the city donated the Hinkle House, one of the oldest houses in Dodge City, to Interfaith Housing in December, it was with the understanding that they would renovate the house, and rent it out. The renovation project is set to begin in just over a week.

Interfaith Housing will hold a ribbon cutting ceremony at 11:30 a.m. Jan. 11 at 801 First Street to celebrate the start of the renovation. The community is invited to attend.

The goal of the project is to make the house livable once again, while still keeping it's historical aspects as intact as possible.

"We haven't finished developing our plans yet," said John Scott, president and CEO of Interfaith Housing. "But, right now, it looks like we'll have to strip the interior down to the bare studs, and rebuild the plumbing, electrical, heating, air and everything. On the outside, we'll try to keep it as close to period as possible."

Scott admitted keeping the house in it's original style is going to be a challenge, but is confident it's nothing they can't handle.

Part of the house has a flat roof, and Scott said fixing it could be hard. Also, he wants to raise the roof slightly but knows the task will be difficult.

Once the renovations are completed, the house will be available to rent.

A historical marker will also be placed outside Hinkle House to inform visitors about the history of the location. It will also remain on the walking tour of Dodge City.

"There's a lot of small things that are going to pop up along the way," Scott said, "but we'll just face it as it come up."

Scott wasn't sure when the house will be completed and ready to live in because renovations will be done by volunteers and paid for with donated funds.

"It's hard to put a deadline on a project like this when you're depending on volunteers," Scott said, "but I'm hoping possibly to finish within six months."

In fact, Interfaith Housing is still looking for volunteers to help with the renovation. Interested individuals should call (620) 371-6524.

"We're really excited about getting started on this project," Scott said. "This is the first house we've fixed up in Dodge City, but if you know of any others that could be fixed up and put back into use, don't hesitate to contact us. This is a great donation to make to the community."